Modern Love

January 31, 2022 11:36 AM

Modern Love
Modern Love is a short hypothetical story about love in the age of data. "It was the tradition now. To go along with those old markers of commitment – engagement rings, joint bank accounts, borrowed clothes, shared rent – there was this opening up of your data to each other, all the things you had said and done and seen and been, all the way back to the beginning of time (2007). There was no deeper symbol of your trust, no greater intimacy in your relationship, than this limitless mingling of information. Anna and Oya laid their phones on top of each other and between them they shared everything."

Modern Love is the 44th story in my Tales Of The Town series of weekly short stories set in a small and strange town (the early beginnings of which were previously posted to projects here almost a year ago now), although you don't need to have read any of the previous ones to read this one.

If you do want to read them, though, here's the list so far (new ones appear most Saturday mornings):

Season One (Summer)

Tale #0: A Cast Of Characters (in which we meet the inhabitants of the town)
Tale #1: The Poetry Competition (the children discuss the nature of poetry)
Tale #2: Three Short Tales About Antoine (the loneliness of adults)
Tale #3: The New Boy (there's a new boy at school)
Tale #4: The Classification Of Animals (dreams of creatures)
Tale #5: There Is No Such Thing As Ghosts (on the existence of ghosts)
Tale #6: On The Beach (the beach is a mystery to all)
Tale #7: The Most Disgusting Thing In The World (a discussion)
Tale #8: David (self portrait #1)
Tale #9: The Dolls Room (the aren't creepy at all)
Tale #10: The Speed Of Dreams (there are other worlds than these)
Tale #11: The First Ice Cream Van Of The Summer (a warning from history)
Tale #12: The Sky At Night (it is beautiful up there)
Tale #13: An Alphabet Of Absences (a miniature literary masterpiece)
Tale #14: The Little Drummer Girl (in the woods she walks and plays)
Tale #15: Summer (summer)
Tale #16: Broadcast Media (youtube aspirations)
Tale #17: Emergency Repairs (in which we meet the witch)
Tale #18: The Eggs (educational incubation)
Tale #19: Go (the speed of things)
Tale #20: Dimensional Perception (philosophical debate)
Tale #21: The Bookshop (books and cats)
Tale #22: The Slide (where does it lead)
Tale #23: David (self portrait #2)
Tale #24: Hell (at the end of the slide)
Tale #25: Beneath The Boat, On The Top Of The Hill (more sadness, but with cats)
Tale #26: The Loft (emergence)
Tale #27: Poems In The Dirt (the romance of ephemerality)

Season Two (Winter)

Tale #28: Literary Criticism (on the nature and purpose of fiction itself)
Tale #29: An Arrival (foreshadowing events not yet written or conceived)
Tale #30: The Lake (featuring an appearance by the whale)
Tale #31: The Town Hall (political musings)
Tale #32: A Gathering Of Crows (ominous events)
Tale #33: David (self portrait #3)
Tale #34: The Boy With The Box (parts 1, 2, and 3) (what has he got in there)
Tale #35: Five Dreams Of Space (space is the place)
Tale #36: Saturday Morning Spending Spree (pocket money, and t he expenditure thereof)
Tale #37: A Simple Winter Scene (christmas special)
Tale #38: The Frozen Sea (above, upon, below)
Tale #39: The Moons Of Earth (a discussion of their merits)
Tale #40: The Woman With Wings (transformation)
Tale #41: The Houseplant (it grows and grows)
Tale #42: David (self portrait #4)
Tale #43: The Alligator (classroom pets)
Tale #44: Modern Love (love and trust)

Bonus Pieces

Tales From The Town Pocket Editions #1-#4 (stand alone tales in miniature booklet form)
Tales From The Town Pocket Editions #5-#9 (more of the same, but now including one made by my niece)

Role: writer

posted by dng (2 comments total)

Oh my, that was really good. I thought it was going to go to a more ominous place after the discussion of Anna's fears, but it ended up on a much more hopeful note.
posted by jacquilynne at 11:52 AM on February 2, 2022 [1 favorite]

Excellent, thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.
posted by dng at 4:29 PM on February 2, 2022